The Writing Dance

Today, my five year old had her ballet recital. The venue was magical as it is an old historic theatre that once hosted speakers such as Amelia Earhart, Helen Keller, Grant Wood, and now includes several modern-day celebrities as guests on its stage.

But, my five year old didn't know any of that, of course (only her kooky historic writing mama). She just knew that she was there to dance--her favorite thing to do. I snapped this shot as she waited for"Act 2"-- her turn. In the part of the red curtain, she spied the older dancers on the stage, and the lights, and the audience, and the shine.

As I look back through the pictures tonight, I wonder, was she waiting or was she dreaming? Because if you know my daughter, she is a dreamer. Make-believe is her specialty and life is all about the dream we make it. Pretty coincidental for the child of a fiction writing mama, huh? Nah.

Once upon a time, I was just like her. I used to be content with dreaming. I would drive about town and imagine the wonderful scenes I could write, and dream about the stories that might be told one day from my computer keyboard. It was a crazy little secret I held, one that fluttered around in the pit of my belly, that would give me joy and hope and inspiration to create characters and life outside my own.

But then, once the secret urged me to share in the magic of the writing show and it became known that I wrote, and I was measured up next to all the writers before me and with me, that's when the dreaming turned to waiting.

Don't get me wrong, I still dream along this aisle toward center stage, but, I'll admit that I wait more than I dream. And sometimes, the waiting makes the dreaming seem like a waste of time.

As I trek into the thick of this ten year road to publication, I begin to long for the dreaming again. I see my daughter's potential and her patience for the dream. She's happy where she is at on stage, forgetting her twirls and positions and never making it through the routine without a glance into the wings where her teacher dances about to reminds her. Yet, she feels like a ballerina. She looks like a ballerina. She is a ballerina with a dream.

And she's happy there. For now.

I want to be happy here, for now. Where my dream fills my heart and the waiting is not a burden. Do I daresay that writing is more waiting than dreaming? No. It's a dance. We wait, and while we wait, we dream. And we should never stop dreaming. Writers, we should always dream in the wait.

At the end of the recital, one of the older girls had a solo on point. Her beautiful slender legs didn't wobble as she danced on her toes, wearing a wonderfully rich red tutu. (My daughter's been known to sit and admire the point dancers after practice, unwinding those ribbons attached to the magical point shoes that are certainly a far off dream at this time.)

While we watched this seasoned ballerina, I didn't hear my daughter say, "I can't wait until I do that", or "Mama, when can I have point shoes?". She didn't say anything at all, but smiled and watched. I sat with her in admiration for the prima ballerina wondering what dreaming was going on in that little head of my girl, and a bit envious that she didn't care about the wait, just enjoyed watching those before her live a dream. Maybe her dream, but that's the beauty of the dance.

Maybe it's the same for writers. For me.

How about you? Do you wait more than you dream? Or are you enjoying the dance of the two?

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Angie Dicken is a full-time mom and lives in the Midwest with her Texas Aggie sweetheart. An ACFW member since 2010, she has written six historical novels and is represented by Tamela Hancock Murray of The Steve Laube Agency. Angie also spends her time designing one-sheets and drinking good coffee with great friends. Check her personal blog at angiedicken.blogspot.com and connect at:

Facebook: www.facebook.com/dicken.angie, 

Twitter: @angiedicken

Pinterest: www.pinterest.com/agdicken/

Protecting Your Dreams

I first wrote this post a year ago, but I felt it was really relevant to the changing and often-challenging face of CBA lately. Left and right, we're hearing discouraging reports about bookstores folding, filing bankruptcy, etc., and publishing houses having to bear the brunt of those changes. As a result, agents, authors, and those of us dreaming of book publication are all being affected. I hope this post encourages you today to hold fast to the dreams God has given you, and to remember that God is bigger than any industry variables that may catch us off-guard.

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"He who calls you is faithful; he will surely do it." -- 1 Thessalonians 5:24 


Hi, writer friends! Today I want to talk about something that-- after five years of being a part of this writing journey-- is close to my heart. And that is... disappointment. I see so many friends go through the ups and downs of hope and disappointment, and believe me, I've been there myself. Maybe that's how you're feeling today. Perhaps you didn't get the feedback you were hoping to receive from a contest, or an editor you really respect recently rejected your manuscript.

Image by  Evgeni Dinev from FreeDigitalPhotos.com

I'd venture to say that every. single. writer. experiences disappointment in this journey. For some, the disappointment cuts so deeply, they feel like giving up. Others actually do give up-- they walk away when their hearts just can't seem to take anymore rejection. The mountains just seem so high.

Let's get real for a minute. Writing is not for the weak of heart. It requires diligent adherence to deep vision, and dismissal of all those outside voices vying for your attention. You know the ones. Over time, they just seem to get louder, don't they? Have you ever caught yourself letting these sentiments echo in your heart?

• An editor isn't going to like that.
• Your hook isn't strong enough.
• Why are you doing this, anyway? It's not like you have any actual readers.
• Your characterization falls flat.
• Your dialogue is stilted.
• A scene describing a pencil would be less boring.
• Wait a second-- did you just rehash the exact plot from While You Were Sleeping?

As writers, we have this crazy hard job of simultaneously putting 100% of our hearts into our stories-- weaving the fabric of our being into the fabric of our characters' struggles-- and protecting our hearts from criticism and rejection. Have you ever noticed that some people are better at one than the other? When I first graduated with my M.A., I was excellent at receiving criticism. Believe me, I was well used to professors criticizing my rough-draft essays-- it was just part of the process for everyone. But you know what? As I've gotten farther along on this writing journey, criticism has actually gotten harder-- in a way-- to receive, because I find myself investing more and more emotion into each story. And that's okay.

Some people think, "If I could only get published, everything would be easier." And while, yes, I personally think having real-life readers (as opposed to merely imaginary ones) does make things easier, at the same time, publication brings its own set of rejection and disappointment. Maybe your sales numbers aren't what you want, or you're having agent troubles, or you got a round of really harsh reviews on your story.

The writing world goes a little something like this: rejection. rejection. rejection. rejection. rejection. rejection. rejection. hope. rejection. rejection. a sale!!! rejection. rejection. rejection. rejection. a sale!!!

And repeat. 

Image by vorakorn,from FreeDigitalPhotos.com

But here's the thing. If we aren't careful, we can allow ourselves to become crushed in this process. It's like we've been in an emotional battle of sorts, and we come out wounded and scarred along the way from overly-harsh criticism and dreams that seem to have crashed and burned. 

That's where 1 Thessalonians 5:24 comes in. "He who calls you is faithful; he will surely do it."

And with that in mind, I want to issue a challenge to you today.

God. is. faithful.

Do you believe it? 

Do you really believe God is faithful? And if so, that leads to my second question. Do you believe God has called you?

Because if you do, then you have a responsibility to protect and to chase your dreams. Through all the pain, and all the disappointment, and all the rejection, the One who has called you is stronger. He has a much bigger plan through it all, and He has not led you down this pathway only to desert you. If you feel like giving up, hold on-- cling to Him as you never have before, and you may find unexpected growth and opportunity when you least expect it.

God has a purpose for your stories. That purpose is greater and bigger than anything you can imagine. He's promised that. So don't give up on Him. There is a reward for those who are faithful to the calling. Imagine if your favorite novelist had thrown in the towel just before publication. How would your own life be different? Your writing journey? What if God wants you to be that author for someone else? Maybe even for the next generation?

And don't forget that God's promises are sometimes different from our own. Maybe God never intended for you to be a NYT bestseller, but He does want your story to forever change the life of the elderly widow down your street. Be open to where His plan leads, because the ultimate fulfillment is in following Him, and learning to see writing as a form of worship.

So, what do you think? Do you ever find yourself discouraged by the ups and downs of writing? What promises do you hold on to to keep you going?

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Ashley Clark writes romance with southern grace. She's dreamed of being a writer ever since the thumbprint-cookie-days of library story hour. Ashley has an M.A. in English and enjoys teaching literature courses at her local university. She's an active member of ACFW and runs their newcomer's loop. When she's not writing, Ashley's usually busy rescuing stray animals and finding charming new towns. You can find Ashley on her personal blog, Facebook, Pinterest, and Twitter. She is represented by Karen Solem.